He dismisses my apology and cuts me off. “I followed you from the apothecary,” he says, like that’s a reasonable explanation.

“You what?” I say, trying to make sense of his words.

“Can we just get out of the street for a second?” he says.

I look at the restaurant window. “But—”

“Now, November,” Matteo says. “You wait any longer and someone from my Family will see you.”

My heart sinks. I want to tell him that it’s my Family, too, but I know that answer won’t land. Reluctantly I follow him across the street and down a block onto a residential street.

Matteo stops on the sidewalk in front of a row of apartment buildings and turns to face me. “Now tell me: What were you doing at that restaurant?” he says like it’s an accusation.

“What were you doing following me?” I reply with just as much frustration.

“I’m not playing this game with you, November,” Matteo says with a huff. “Answer my question and I will answer yours.”

I stare at him, looking for any sign of deception, but he seems to be telling the truth. “The apothecary…,” I say, trying to figure out how to phrase what I need to say.

“What about the apothecary?” Matteo says with frustrated insistence.

“She wants your mom’s bear necklace in exchange for the products I need,” I say, opting to just use a straightforward approach even though I know it sounds bad.

Matteo frowns. “Are you telling me you were going to steal my mom’s necklace?”

“No, no…,” I say quickly. “I was going to ask her for it.”

Matteo glares at me like I’ve lost all my good sense. “You were…No, November. No. How did you even know she was there?”

“The apothecary told me,” I say.

Matteo’s frown deepens. “You’re definitely not asking my mom for her necklace.”

I stare at him, matching his displeasure. “That’s not something you get to decide, Matteo. And if someone’s going to tell me no, it’s going to be your mom, not you. I need to fulfill my bargain with the apothecary. It’s important.”

“Well, you’re not fulfilling it by going to that restaurant,” he says forcefully.

For a second we just stare at each other and I wonder if I could outrun him. There are probably a million reasons why that’s a bad idea, but all I can think is that my mom’s sister—my aunt—is only a couple of blocks away from me, holding something that will help me find my dad.

Before I can respond, Matteo unzips the top of his coat and pulls a necklace out from under his sweater. It has a delicately carved golden bear claw hanging from it.

“You have the—”

“We all do,” Matteo says. “Me, my mom, my grandfather, your mom, Aunt Jo.”